Assume that you are viewing a web page on the course website from a computer loc
ID: 3637568 • Letter: A
Question
Assume that you are viewing a web page on the course website from a computer located at your home or your office. Research and describe the network connectivity and the network architecture between your computer and the server at University where the web page is located. If you are not able to get specific information on how your machine is connected to the Internet, describe how machines in comparable environments would be connected. You can assume for this question that the web server at University isconnected directly to the University backbone network. You should also include in your answer information on the typical protocols that are used for this communication. (Your answer to this question should be limited to about one page and hence you should include just the important details.) [3 points]
Explanation / Answer
A computer network, often simply referred to as a network, is a collection of hardware components and computers interconnected by communication channels that allow sharing of resources and information.[1] Where at least one process in one device is able to send/receive data to/from at least one process residing in a remote device, then the two devices are said to be in a network. Networks may be classified according to a wide variety of characteristics such as the medium used to transport the data, communications protocol used, scale, topology, and organizational scope. Communications protocols define the rules and data formats for exchanging information in a computer network, and provide the basis for network programming. Well-known communications protocols are Ethernet, a hardware and Link Layer standard that is ubiquitous in local area networks, and the Internet Protocol Suite, which defines a set of protocols for internetworking, i.e. for data communication between multiple networks, as well as host-to-host data transfer, and application-specific data transmission formats. Computer networking is sometimes considered a sub-discipline of electrical engineering, telecommunications, computer science, information technology or computer engineering, since it relies upon the theoretical and practical application of these disciplines.